Refrigerator

Abstract

A refrigerator includes a main body including an inner case and an outer case, a storage compartment defined by the inner case, a door configured to open and close the storage compartment, an ice making chamber disposed on a rear surface of the door, a fan configured to supply cold air to the storage compartment and the ice making chamber, and a guide passage formed by being recessed into the inner case to guide cold air supplied by the fan to the ice making chamber. The inner case includes an upper wall, and the guide passage is formed by being recessed into the upper wall of the inner case to be exposed to the storage compartment.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A refrigerator, comprising:
 a main body including an inner case and an outer case wherein the inner case includes an upper wall and a rear wall; 
 a storage compartment defined by the inner case; 
 a door configured to open or close the storage compartment; 
 an ice making chamber disposed on a rear surface of the door; 
 a fan configured to supply cold air to the storage compartment and the ice making chamber; and 
 a guide passage integrally formed with the inner case by being recessed into the upper wall of the inner case so as to be exposed to the storage compartment, the guide passage being configured to guide cold air supplied by the fan to the ice making chamber, 
 wherein the guide passage includes:
 a first end recessed into the upper wall of the inner case by a first depth and being disposed adjacent to the rear wall of the inner case; and 
 a second end disposed recessed into the upper wall of the inner case by a second depth and being disposed closer to the ice making chamber than the first end, the second depth being less than the first depth such that a portion of the upper wall including the guide passage is inclined downward toward the door. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a cold air inlet through which cold air supplied by the fan is introduced into the storage compartment to the guide passage, is formed on the rear wall of the inner case. 
 
     
     
       3. The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a duct cover defining a cold air supply duct in which the fan is accommodated together with the rear wall of the inner case; and 
 a cold air inlet through which cold air supplied by the fan is introduced into the storage compartment to the guide passage is formed on the duct cover. 
 
     
     
       4. The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a light source installed on the upper wall of the inner case to illuminate the storage compartment and positioned between the guide passage and the ice making chamber to guide the cold air together with the guide passage to the ice making chamber. 
 
     
     
       5. The refrigerator according to  claim 4 , wherein
 the light source includes a light emitting surface inclined toward the ice making chamber with respect to the upper wall of the inner case so that the cold air moves along the light emitting surface. 
 
     
     
       6. The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the door includes:
 a front plate forming an outer appearance of the refrigerator together with the outer case of the main body, and 
 a rear plate defining the rear surface of the door and coupled to a rear surface of the front plate, and 
 
 the ice making chamber includes:
 an ice making frame coupled to the rear plate, 
 an ice making casing coupled to at least one of the ice making frame and the rear plate to form an ice making space therein, and 
 an ice making chamber cover including a plurality of cold air inflow slits to allow cold air having passed through the guide passage to be introduced into the ice making space and forming an outer appearance of the ice making chamber together with the ice making casing. 
 
 
     
     
       7. The refrigerator according to  claim 6 , further comprising:
 an ice maker disposed in the ice making space, 
 wherein the ice maker includes an ice making tray including ice making cells to store water and formed of a plastic material. 
 
     
     
       8. The refrigerator according to  claim 7 , wherein
 the ice maker further includes a tray cover coupled to an outer side of the ice making tray, and 
 the ice making frame includes a plurality of guide ribs defining a first cold air passage in which a part of cold air introduced through the plurality of cold air inflow slits moves. 
 
     
     
       9. The refrigerator according to  claim 7 , wherein the ice making chamber cover has a curved shape to partially surround the ice making space so that the plurality of cold air inflow slits are aligned toward the ice maker. 
     
     
       10. The refrigerator according to  claim 8 , wherein
 the tray cover includes a first wall facing the ice making frame, and 
 the plurality of guide ribs extends from the ice making frame to face the first wall of the tray cover. 
 
     
     
       11. The refrigerator according to  claim 8 , wherein
 the tray cover includes a first wall facing the ice making frame, and 
 the first cold air passage includes:
 a first section positioned upstream in a direction in which cold air introduced through the plurality of cold air inflow slit moves and extending in a vertical direction of the refrigerator, and 
 a second section positioned downstream in the direction in which cold air introduced through the plurality of cold air inflow slit moves and extending from the first section to be inclined toward the first wall of the tray cover. 
 
 
     
     
       12. The refrigerator according to  claim 11 , wherein
 cold air moving along the first section of the first cold air passage is brought into direct contact with the first wall of the tray cover, and 
 cold air having passed through the second section of the first cold air passage is brought into direct contact with an outer surface of a bottom of the ice making tray. 
 
     
     
       13. The refrigerator according to  claim 10 , wherein
 the tray cover further includes a second wall facing the first wall, and 
 a plurality of cold air movement holes, through which a second cold air passage in which another part of the cold air introduced through the plurality of cold air inflow slits moves passes, is formed on the second wall of the tray cover. 
 
     
     
       14. The refrigerator according to  claim 13 , wherein
 cold air moving along the second cold air passage is brought into direct contact with one wall of the ice making tray facing the second wall of the tray cover. 
 
     
     
       15. The refrigerator according to  claim 8 , wherein
 the ice making chamber cover and the ice making casing are disposed to be spaced apart from each other in a vertical direction of the refrigerator to define a cold air outlet, 
 each of the plurality of guide ribs includes one end facing downward, and 
 the one end of each of the plurality of guide ribs is positioned between an upper end and a lower end of the cold air outlet. 
 
     
     
       16. The refrigerator according to  claim 6 , wherein
 the ice making chamber cover and the ice making casing are disposed to be spaced apart from each other in a vertical direction of the refrigerator to define a cold air outlet, and 
 cold air introduced into the ice making space is discharged into the storage compartment through the cold air outlet. 
 
     
     
       17. The refrigerator according to  claim 6 , wherein the ice making chamber cover further includes a plurality of partition ribs extended toward the ice maker from an inner surface thereof, and to partition the plurality of cold air inflow slits. 
     
     
       18. The refrigerator according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the first end of the guide passage has a first width which extends in a horizontal direction perpendicular to a vertical direction of the refrigerator, and 
 the second end of the guide passage has a second width extending in the horizontal direction, the second width being greater than the first width.